Approval rates
Comparing a judge's approval rate to office and national benchmarks helps provide context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Kallsnick currently holds a 61% lifetime approval rate, which is 3 percentage points higher than the national average of 58% but slightly below the latest Tulsa office average of 64%. These figures are derived from a significant docket of 2,249 lifetime decisions. Aggregate rates describe past decisions, not predictions for individual hearings.
Office- and national-level breakdowns of fully favorable vs denial rates aren't currently published by SSA in the per-office disposition data. The judge's own breakdown is the detail we have today.
Approval rate over time
Year-over-year approval rate across Judge Kallsnick's docket. Annual rates fluctuate with the mix of cases SSA assigns; the longer-run pattern is more informative than any single year.
Decision pattern
Throughout his 1 year on the bench, Judge Kallsnick has maintained a steady approval pattern. With 2,249 lifetime decisions, the data reflects a consistent approach to evaluating your disability claim. His career history shows stability across his time in the Tulsa office, where his approval rates have remained within a narrow margin. This trend suggests a predictable approach to evidence evaluation, and the latest period reflects a continuation of this steady pattern.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Kallsnick's bench. Judge-specific preparation guidance requires a corpus of public Appeals Council decisions involving each judge, which we haven't built yet.
- Bring a clean treating-physician record. Longitudinal primary-care or specialist notes spanning the disability period, with consistent symptom documentation, are typically the strongest evidence at hearing. A single month's records usually aren't enough.
- Don't rely on consultative exams alone. If your medical evidence is built primarily around a one-time CE finding, expect detailed questioning. Supplement with treating-source statements where possible.
- Prepare for daily-activity questions. Have honest, specific answers about a typical day. Answers that conflict with the medical record (in either direction) tend to hurt credibility.
- Expect transferable-skills probing. A vocational expert will usually testify about jobs available to someone with your limitations. Your representative should be prepared to cross-examine.
Hearing with Judge Kallsnick? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Tulsa hearing office
The Tulsa Hearing Office serves a broad population across Oklahoma, managing a high volume of SSDI cases with a bench of 6 judges. The office currently reports an average approval rate of 64%, reflecting the regional trends in disability adjudication. You can expect a formal process focused on your medical documentation and vocational testimony. You can see the Tulsa Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration utilizes a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the Tulsa Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench vary significantly, ranging from 38% to 80%. Because each judge brings a unique perspective to the courtroom, understanding the office-wide environment is helpful. You can find more information on the Tulsa hearing office page.
Your odds change dramatically with a lawyer
SSDI hearing approval rates — represented vs. on your own
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-18-37. The 3× gap is a population-wide average across all judges; individual outcomes vary.